Field Trip to Stark Industries
by AmokIsHungry
Summary: Peter goes on a class field trip to SI. Or Peter is bullied by Flash and he has to stop the Avengers from murdering Flash because the Avengers are protective of their baby spider
1. Field trip to WHERE?

Peter's day was going well for the most part. Flash hadn't bothered him yet and there were no obvious alien invasions detected by his spidey-sense. But then again, it was only last period of school and a lot could still go wrong in the rest of the day. Last period was AP Physics with Mr Crooks, a bald-faced man with stubbles of hair around the crown of his head. His thin-framed glasses were propped up by the not-so-subtle curve of his nose as he called attendance for the twenty-seven rowdy juniors in the room. Peter glanced at the whiteboard at the front of the room and groaned quietly into the elbow of his hoodie as he leant on the desk in front of him.

The board had read "_Gamma Radiation" _in the messy scrawl of Mr Crooks which obviously meant that this lesson was going to be boring. He could talk about gamma radiation for hours, even in his sleep (no seriously, he'd been caught more than once reciting complex formulas while napping on the couch). For the past few weeks, he had been studying gamma radiation with _The _Bruce Banner.

"Peter Parker." Mr Crooks half yelled, breaking through Peter's daydreaming thoughts about his upcoming weekend activities at the Tower. He had completely tuned the drone of the class's attendance out as his mind wandered.

"Here sir. Sorry," Peter let out in a rush as to not get more in trouble than he already was for not paying attention. He could already hear Flash snicker from behind him while Ned gave him a sympathetic look. Mr Crooks continued through the class list, as Peter readied himself for yet another boring Physics class.

"Alright, so today we will continue our nuclear physics topic with gamma radiation. Can you all please get out your textbooks and open to the gamma radiation section. Get ready to take lots of notes, this will be on the test." Mr Crooks stated as a loud rustling of paper and bags was emitted from the classroom. Peter sighed as he grabbed his textbook from his bag, opening to the correct section after a quick skim through the contents page.

"Does anyone know which page it is?" Mr Crooks called out amongst the din.

"Chapter four, page 97 sir," Flash screamed from directly behind Peter, causing him to flinch as his enhanced senses gave him a slight sensory overload.

"Thankyou Flash. Okay, can you please read the opening paragraph?"

"Of course sir."

Flash was a big suck up to all the teachers, they all loved him which was helped by the fact that his parents were large donors to the school. It was one of the reasons they never punished him for bullying Peter.

"Gamma Decay. While alpha and beta decay bear the characteristics of matter, there is no mass change associated with gamma emission as it is a form of electromagnetic radiation. Gamma radiation is similar to x-rays in that it is a high energy, short-wavelength form of radiation. It is…" Peter internally groaned as he ignored Flash, deciding to instead mentally plan for the weekend ahead.

After May had died in a fire that had destroyed the entire apartment block a year ago, Peter had moved into the Stark Industries/Avengers' Tower, finally accepting the offer of becoming an Avenger. After the move, he became close with all the Avengers, even the one who lived miles away (T'Challa and Shuri). They were all one big dysfunctional happy family. Despite Peter's rocky introductions to the family (he holed himself up in his new room for weeks. I mean his only living relative had just died, cut the boy some slack), they were closer than ever.

A few months after the move, Peter accidentally called Tony, Dad, at the dinner table. Surrounded by all the resident Avengers. Peter was mortified but quickly got over it as they all laughed it off and warmed to the idea. From then on Tony and Pepper were his new parents (they adopted him) and the rest of the Avengers were his uncles and aunts. Shuri and Peter had a special bond however, one of indecipherable maths and science, where they talked for hours on end about everything from biomechanics to quantum physics. Despite them both being only sixteen, they were smarter than even Tony and Bruce themselves, and that was when they were apart. Of course together they were a force to be reckoned with, constantly starting prank wars and blowing up the lab more times than you could count on two hands.

And Shuri was coming this weekend. Planning pranks and perfecting the formula for his web fluid was so much more interesting than the basics of gamma radiation. Lost in thought, Peter doodled some prank plans disguised as physics problems into his workbook while Flash continued 'educating' the class. It was clear no one was paying attention anyway. Ned nudged him and gave him a pointed look as Peter quickly snatched his book closed. Flash had finished speaking and Mr Crooks was coming around with a question booklet.

"Now I don't expect you to finish these this lesson but they must be done for homework for Monday, and MJ, please stop drawing Mr Abrams." Mr Crooks stated as he passed through the aisles of desks. Peter absentmindedly reached for the two booklets haphazardly strewn across he and Ned's desk. Passing one to Ned, he flipped through the booklet. It was all easy and would take him fifteen minutes tops. Well, so much for homework.

Quickly working through the problems in his head and jotting down the answers, Peter completed the booklet in record time, nine minutes and twenty six seconds to be exact. Tony and Bruce would be proud. After all the questions were completed, Peter returned to planning his pranks against Clint for when Shuri arrives on Saturday morning. The rest of the class passed in a blur as his mind wandered and his hand doodled in his workbook. The boredom consumed Peter as he surveyed the rest of the silent classroom, busily working in the supposedly difficult problems, before his eyes finally landed on the bell synchronised clock in the corner of the room.

"Ugh. Still five minutes to go." Peter muttered under his breath.

By the time the bell finally rang, all Peter wanted was to relax on the worn down couch in the common room and snuggle with his мама паук and mom. But obviously the world was against him as Mr Crooks held up his hand to halt the students' desperate exit from the classroom.

"I have great news everyone," Mr Crooks exclaimed somewhat excitedly. "Since you all scored so well on the last test we have decided to give you a surprise field trip!"

Excited whispers rose from around the classroom all speculating as to where the class would be going. Midtown was infamous for their amazing field trip locations, although Peter's spidey-sense had him thinking that this one would be less than desirable. Mr Crooks's loud voice yelled over the ruckus,

"Okay, okay. Calm down everyone. On Friday we will be going to…" he held for dramatic effect, much to the chagrin of all the students (except Peter), "Stark Industries aka Avenger's Tower, permission slips on my desk". The class erupted into chatter,

"Oh my gosh, do you think we'll see Tony Stark?"

"I wonder if the Avenger's will be there?"

"Maybe we'll get to see the Avenger's train? Or maybe we'll get to spar with them."

"It's going to be awesome" Peter's sensitive hearing picked up everyone's conversations. Great. His whole class, at his house. Peter slumped down to his desk, his Dad and the rest of the Avengers would most definitely try to embarrass him. He would just have to trust that Pepper would try to keep them at bay.

Ned poked Peter in the side and burst into excited chatter as they packed up their stuff, getting ready to exit the classroom.

"Dude this is so cool. We get to go to your house and see all the labs, oh my gosh I'm so excited!"

"Ned you were there just last week. You came over to work on the lego death star remember?" Peter grumbled into his baggy hoodie.

"I know, but it's still exciting though. I mean, you'll get to prove Flash wrong about the internship, at least be happy about that."

"Yeah good point, but still…" Peter was abruptly cut off as Flash spitballed the back of his head.

"You still believe this loser? Obviously he's lying, aren't you _Penis_ Parker?" Flash called out. Peter slowly turned to face the tormentor.

"I'm not lying Flash. I really am an intern."

"Yeah right, like they would choose you over me. I'm better in like every way imaginable. My name's Flash. But if you give up your lie now we won't hold it against you. I mean you probably just wanted some attention after your Aunt killed herself to get away from you." Despite the fact that the accident was over a year ago, it was still a soft spot for Peter.

"Back off Flash" MJ stated indifferently as she strolled pass the altercation. Since when did MJ defend Peter? Flash said nothing more but shoved Peter into the corner of his desk as he walked past.

"Forget about Flash, Pete. He's just a jealous loser." Ned said comforting me as we walked out the door.

"Um, Mr Parker. Can I have a word please?" Mr Crooks called from inside the classroom. '_So much for going home' _Peter thought to himself as he pivoted on the spot and retreated back into the classroom motioning to Ned that he would be fine.

"What's wrong Mr Crooks?" Peter asked, genuinely unsure of the events to follow.

"I'm sorry Peter, but this lie has gone on long enough now. It's been okay, as I'm sure it's just a defence strategy from your Aunt's death and wanting some attention, but I can't let you make a fool of us at Stark Industries. Just remember we are representing the school while we are there. This is a big opportunity for us as high schools are generally not allowed to tour."

This caught Peter off guard. Although he knew that Mr Crooks didn't particularly like him as such and the majority of the student body didn't believe he had the internship, he did think that the staff and teachers believed in him.

"M..M..Mr Crooks.. I am a..an intern."

"I'm sorry Peter, I know how easy it is to get caught up in a lie, but if you don't own up before the tour starts we may have to send you home and suspend you for a week. Goodbye Mr Parker, and remember the slips are due by tomorrow."

Peter was lost for words. First Flash didn't believe him and caused him grief and then the school faculty? Well, this trip was going to be a nightmare.


	2. Mini Freak Out time

"MiniBoss, Peter Parker-Stark. Alpha-10. Welcome home Peter, would you like me to inform Boss or Mrs Stark of your presence?" FRIDAY welcomed Peter into the tower as he walked straight through the tight security.

"Is Mom busy?" Peter replied to the AI. "Wait, did Uncle Clint change my name again? FRIDAY, please change my name back."

"Unfortunately, my protocols are being overridden by BossAssBitch, Shuri of Wakanda. And no, Mrs Stark appears to be arguing with Boss in his lab."

"Can you please tell Mom that I will be ready to help her with dinner after I have my shower?"

"Of course, MiniBoss."

Peter internally groaned at the AI. Of course, Shuri would mess with him before she even arrived. Dragging himself to the private elevator, Peter mentally prepared himself for the potential onslaught of embarrassment he was going to face. His whole class was going to be in his house. His home! Not to mention the pranks the other Avengers would play on him if they found out. This was definitely going to be a disaster.

"_Avengers Common Floor_ please FRIDAY."

"Of course MiniBoss" FRIDAY replied immediately.

Peter silently cringed at the name as the elevator rose quickly and silently the rest of the way through the tower to the Avengers floors.

Stumbling out of the closing elevator doors, Peter steeled himself for the awkwardness that was going to result from the oncoming conversation. Dumping his school bag on a stool at the bench, he watched as Pepper Stark burst through a door frustratedly muttering to herself about the annoyances of Tony Stark and his constant tinkering.

"Uhh, Mom?" Peter asked hesitantly. Better to get it over and done with Peter decided.

"Yes, sweetheart? What is it?" she replied with a kind smile, her frustration at Tony dissipating in an instant.

"Can you please sign this permission slip for my field trip on Friday?"

"Of course darling." Pepper took the note from Peter's unusually shaky hands and read it over carefully, pausing as she discovered the location.

"Field trip to Avengers Tower? Your class is coming here?" Pepper questioned with a laugh.

"Please don't tell Dad. Please? Or any of the other Avengers for that matter…" Peter exclaimed in a rush. If the Avengers found out about this trip, it really would be hell.

"I won't. I promise. And I'll try to schedule some meetings for your troublesome father to attend on Friday to keep him out of your way. Although I can't do much for the other Avengers though. You'll just have to hope they don't find out." Pepper replied as she swiftly and neatly scrawled her loopy signature on the dotted line at the bottom of the page. Peter supposed it was the best outcome for this incredibly cruel twist of fate.

Peter trudged back to his room, desperately trying to avoid any and all interactions with the avengers. He couldn't risk them discovering this field trip secret. Upon reaching his room, Peter immediately slammed the door closed and hid the note in a secret pocket at the base of his school bag ready to be handed in the next day. Over the next few hours, Peter completed all the dismal, pointless homework set by the teachers he had that day. There wasn't much, some Chemistry equations, some English analysis and a sheet of maths problems, all of which took a total of one hour to complete. It was funny really, how the teachers thought the homework set would be enough to cover two or three hours worth of study. Oh well, too bad for them, it only meant more time in the lab.

After all his homework was completed, Peter rushed down the stairs to his lab. It was private, separated from Tony's by a soundproof glass wall, and was filled to the brim with various pieces of technological equipment and holographic screens. Of course, there were also large piles of paper covered in blueprints and designs for new advancements, created by Peter himself. He was a lot like Tony in the way he was so easily caught up in his work, not noticing when hours went by or when frustrated mothers entered the lab yelling at them both to get their asses upstairs for dinner. Quickly finishing and cleaning up the workspace, Peter scrambled back to his room to get changed and cleaned up for dinner.

Striding into the common dining room and kitchen floor, Peter took stock of his surroundings. The sight of Clint Barton (_the Hawkeye!) _arguing with Natasha Romanoff (_yes THE Black Widow!)_ or Steve Rogers yelling "_language!"_ whenever anyone swore was no longer unsurprising or unusual like it was when he first moved in. Yes, sometimes there were days when he couldn't believe that this was his life. Little Peter Parker from Queens was living with the Avengers, not just living with them, but they were his family. One large, crazy, dysfunctional loving family. It was just his luck that they also loved to play pranks.

Sitting down at the large table, he noticed the delicious, aromatic smells of Indian curries wafting from the kitchen. That could only mean that it was Bruce's night for cooking - he always made rich and flavoursome curries and dishes from his time abroad. The dishes full of Indian curries were placed along the table along with the sides of everyone's choice. Peter believed that Bruce's nights were always the best, although Natasha's traditional Russian Borscht or Beef Stroganoff was amazing, particularly in winter. When everyone was finally seated, we all ravenously tucked into the amazing meal. The conversation was quiet, if not silent as people began scoffing their food.

Peter POV

"So, Peter, мой ребенок паук…" (_my baby spider) _Natasha started. I suddenly got a funny feeling he knew where this was going. And I didn't like it. "What was this I heard about a Field Trip on Friday?"

"What Field Trip?" I asked as innocently as possible. I knew however that it wouldn't do any good to lie. This was Natasha we're talking about.

"Oh, you know. This one. The one to Avengers Tower?" She asked with a sickly sweet smile, the mischief was evident in her eyes as she pulled out my signed permission slip. I froze my fork part way to my mouth. The food dropped off it and landed with a splash in the curry on my plate. How the hell had she gotten it? I thought I'd hidden it effectively! Darn it. I'll have to find a better hiding spot next time. Whatever conversation was going on halted when she said Avengers Tower. Double darn it. They knew, and I was definitely going to die of embarrassment.

"You have a field trip to here?" Clint asked, evidently about to burst out laughing as I slowly nodded my head. There was no way out now.

"Only you kid. Only you…"

The rest of the table burst into fits of uncontrollable giggles and laughs, except for Pepper, who was already threatening Tony with extra meetings, and Natasha, whose face was sporting a content smirk.

"Please don't embarrass me in front of my class…" I say in a fruitless effort to stop them.

"No can do kid. No can do. Our pranks and embarrassing features will be in overdrive and there's nothing you can do about it." Clint replied cheekily, looking at Wanda, Bucky and Natasha. This trip is definitely going to be the death of me. Glaring at the rest of the Avengers, I hastily finish my food and gather up my plate to wash up.

No one's POV

Pepper watched as Peter left the table with a sympathetic gaze before turning back to the rest of the Avengers with a deadly glare.

"If you do anything that causes that boy more harm, I will personally create a punishment suited to each of your worst fears." Pepper coolly stated before following Peter out of the room. She may have not been as deadly as Natasha, but everyone knew she could be just as scary.

"Ok so who's in for embarrassing Peter?" Tony said with a grin as every Avenger including Steve put their hands up.

"Great. So I was thinking, Clint in vents, Bucky's cookies, Natasha's training and Russian language. Are we getting the picture now? Yeah?" Tony started to explain his plans. This was going to be a great day for everyone but Peter.

_**Friday Morning (Morning of Field Trip)**_

Peter raced through the school gates just after the bell. He was running late because he was all caught up in the Avengers funny smiles and looks. They were planning something. Something that would not be fun for Peter. Dashing into the classroom at the last possible second, Peter called out his name as Mr Crooks read it out off attendance.

"Just in time Mr Parker. You should be more organised or you may get a tardy next time." Mr Crooks said with a clipped tone.

"Sorry sir," Peter replied.

Peter walked quickly to his shared desk with Ned as Mr Crooks went over some final information before the class boarded the bus.

"I thought you weren't gonna make it for a sec Pete," Ned remarked.

"Yeah well, they're planning something and I don't know what it is. I got a bit caught up. Sorry." Peter replied, genuinely scared for what was to come.

"Alright, class. On to the bus. Stark Industries, here we come!" Mr Crooks exclaimed. It was quickly drowned out by the cheers of the other students as they all piled on to the bus.

The bus ride was filled with nervous and excited chatter from all the students, wondering what they were going to see. Ned was rambling excitedly on the seat next to Peter.

Peter POV

"Dude. Dude! How cool is this! We get to go to the home of the Avengers! Not to mention all the awesome tech there is at Stark Industries. Oh my gosh, this is like the best field trip ever! How are you not excited? This is like a dream come true!" Ned said in a rush and he gushed about the upcoming trip.

"Ned, I am literally going home for a field trip. I've seen everything before, in fact, I see it almost every day. And, you were literally there like a week ago for dinner. You've met all the Avengers." I replied tiredly. I was not in the mood for this. All I wanted to do was go into my lab and finish my designs for my web-shooters. But of course, fate had to screw me over and take me home for school.

Just then Flash leaned over the back of his seat, the one in front of Ned and mine.

"Yo _Penis_! Are you ready for all your lies to be exposed?" he whisper yelled, just quiet enough so Mr Crooks didn't hear.

"Rack off Flash. I really am an intern." I stated.

"Yeah right. Like they would choose Puny Parker over anyone else. Like me for example. The only reason I haven't gotten an internship is that they don't hire high schoolers. Yeah, that's right. I looked it up. There's no way you have an internship."

I was so done with Flash's taunts. Tuning them out I stared out the window, watching the bus make it's familiar route to the doors of Stark Industries and Avengers Tower.

As the bus pulled up at the front of the tower, all the students hastily gathered their stuff and stampeded to the door, all eager to get off the bus and see the inside of one of the most iconic buildings in New York. I hung back, careful to not get trampled as the class filed off the bus and entered the building. Even though it was just the lobby, it was an impressive sight. Large windows and high ceilings gave way to technologically advanced notice boards and schedules. Our tour guide noticed the large group of students enter the room and waved them over to the front desk to collect badges for clearance.

Before I could follow them, however, Mr Crooks grabbed my shoulder, forcing me to stop in my path.

"Now Peter, I can't send you home because we're already here but if you don't stop this lying business I will be forced to give you two weeks worth detention and few days suspension. I talked it over with the principal and he agrees. You can't make a fool of us, this is a very prestigious tour and we can't afford for you to screw it up for the whole class." Mr Crooks half yelled at me.

"I really am sorry sir, but I do have an internship here," I replied hesitantly. I couldn't lie, Dad had given me an official internship a few weeks after I moved into the tower.

"Alright, that's it. Two weeks detention and three days suspension starting Monday. And you have to be in sight of me for the whole tour." he stated. My heart deflated. How could I explain this without telling him I'd been adopted by Tony Stark? I was saved by the tour guide calling Mr Crooks and I over to get our badges.

"Ok, so here you go sir, this is your security clearance badge." our tour guide explained.

"And I'm sorry but I appear to be missing one, what's your name dear?"

"Peter Parker, but it's ok, I have my own." I rushed out quietly so that the rest of my class and Mr Crooks couldn't hear.

"Are you sure?" I nodded. "Alright then. This way, follow me."

We followed the guide to the entryway to the tower, the security gates connected to FRIDAY.

"Ok class. My name is Dr Emma Taylor, and I will be your tour guide today. You can just call me Emma." The class's roar of chatter quieted down so they could hear everything. The whole class was enraptured.

"I am a Beta Level 5 employee here at Stark Industries and I am Assisting Head of the Biomechanics Division of Research and Development. Today we will be visiting some of the lower level intern labs as well as some of the upper-level R & D labs. We will also see the avengers museum for those of you interested in that aspect of Stark Industries as well." After her statement about the Avengers, everyone started talking again. It was obvious the entire class was excited to be in the same place as the Avengers.

"Alright. Ok, settle down now. Please get into a single file line and head through the security gates." Emma shouted over the din. Hesitantly the class gathered in a straight line behind the gates. Flash was in the front, as usual as he pushed himself in front of the other students.

"Ok, now head on through the gate."

Flash began to walk through the security when a loud voice rang out through its speakers.

" Eugene, Flash, Thompson. Delta-1. Welcome Flash."

Flash whirled around looking for the source of the voice as Emma laughed.

"Don't worry, that's just FRIDAY, Mr Stark's AI. She runs the whole building and has cameras everywhere. Say hello FRIDAY."

"Hello, Midtown High. Welcome to Stark Industries. Enjoy your tour." A couple of students said hi back.

"Ok, continue through, please. I'd like to get this tour started."

One by one, the class filed through the system, with FRIDAY calling out each student's name and their Delta-1 clearance level. Until it was my turn. I had hidden at the back of the line and waited until everyone had gone through before I attempted to race through myself. Unfortunately, Emma noticed I was still on the wrong side of the gate and called the attention of my class as I was entering.

"Hurry up, please. We must get going." Emma called out. Darn, now the whole class was watching and listening as I stepped the gate. I was praying for a miracle.

"Miniboss, Peter Parker, Alpha-10. Welcome home Peter, would you like me to inform Boss or Mrs Stark of your presence?" FRIDAY stated in her calm tone after I walked through the gate. I said a silent thankyou to FRIDAY and Dad that they took of the Stark ending to my name. Now that would have caused some questions.

"No thankyou FRIDAY. I'm sure Da- Mr Stark already knows I'm here anyway." I said dejectedly.

"I'm sorry Peter but you are correct. I can, however, lock down sections of the vents so Mr Barton cannot drop down onto you as they had previously planned."

"Thankyou FRIDAY. That would be great."

The class watched my exchange with FRIDAY with confused expressions. Blushing, I dashed over behind Ned and tried to hide from Flash and Emma.

No one's POV

"Does anyone have any questions before we start?" Emma asked trying to diffuse the tension.

"Excuse me, but what do the different numbers mean?" a student asked from the class mass.

"Great question. The different numbers are the levels of clearance you have. It corresponds to how high of an employee you are and which floors are accessible to you." Emma explained. "Now, you all have Delta-1 passes, which means that they will deactivate after you leave the premises, but you can keep them as a souvenir. It also means that you must be accompanied by someone with a Gamma-4 pass or up, otherwise, you will be stuck on whatever floor you are on. Delta passes go from 1 to 3, and are used for visitors to the tower, for tours - level 1, press - level 2 and frequent visitors - level 3."

At this, some students began to fidget nervously, obviously wondering what would happen if they were accidentally left on a floor. How would they get out?

"Gamma passes are for interns and range from 1 to 5 depending on the number of years spent interning at the company and which division you are in. Beta passes are for regular employees and also range from 1 to 5. I am a Beta-5 employee so the highest of the Beta passes. Alpha passes are for important heads of departments, government officials, SHIELD agents and the Avengers with their family. Alpha passes go from 1 to 10 and from level 5 and up you can access some of the Avengers floors. Level 8 and 9 are the live in Avengers and level 10 is just for Tony and Pepper Stark and I think one other person." Emma finished explaining the complicated process and the few who heard Peter's clearance began were shocked.

"Emma? Why does Puny Parker have an Alpha-10 clearance?" Flash shouted over the whole class.

"You are not authorised to ask that question Mr Thompson," FRIDAY stated through the speakers scaring Flash a little. Peter breathed a small sigh of relief. At least he didn't have to answer the question.

Peter POV

"Ok students. Now that we are through security let's get this tour started, shall we? This way to the elevator." Emma said eager to leave the confusion behind.

As the class and Mr Crooks followed Emma, Flash grabbed me by the elbow and shoved me against a wall.

"You think you're so clever, don't you. I know you hacked that robot lady. How much did you have to pay to get the Emma person not to arrest you? Huh? Oh wait, you're poor. You must have begged." Flash taunted angrily.

"Back off Flash. Don't you remember Emma saying FRIDAY had cameras everywhere?" I replied coolly, trying to shake Flash away from my now bruising arm.

"Fine. But don't think I'm not onto you _Penis Parker_."


	3. Interns are Embarrassing

Peter POV

Following Emma to the elevator, the class marvelled at the intricate designs on the walls of the room while also staring wistfully at all the amazing technology the lobby had to offer. Emma was reciting some history of Stark Industries.

"Stark Industries was founded in 1940 by Howard Stark, father of Tony Stark. At that time, Stark Industries was partnered with the United States Armed Forces and supplies weapons for the war. Howard Stark also assisted in the development of the super-soldier serum and created the famed shield used by Captain America." Emma explained.

"Following his death in 1991, Obadiah Stane took over as interim CEO, until Tony relieved his father's position when he turned 21. After Stark returned from his kidnapping in Afghanistan, he shut down the weapons division of the company, choosing instead to focus on helpful technology of the future and clean energy." It was all the stuff I already knew. When I first moved in, I memorised the entire history and floor plan of the company. Yes, maybe it was not necessary, but I wanted to impress Dad so he didn't see me as that random kid who was living with them.

As we reached the elevator doors, Emma stopped us and counted how many students there were. The capacity for the lift was twenty people, and there were twenty-seven students and Mr Crooks to fit in the elevator. Grimacing, Emma split the class in half, the first half to go up to the intern labs with her, and the second half to go with Mr Crooks. Of course, it was just my luck that I was stuck with Flash and Mr Crooks.

"Ok, so we are going to the second level intern laboratories, so you guys can follow us up when the lift returns," Emma said as the first group stepped into the elevator.

When the empty elevator returned and we filed inside, Mr Crooks discovered there were no buttons.

"Umm. How do you do this?" he questioned quietly once the doors were shut. Ned nudged me with his elbow and gestured for me to say something. I knew I should, otherwise, we would be stuck here until another employee arrived. Groaning, I addressed FRIDAY to get the lift moving.

"Uhh, FRIDAY? Can you please take us to the Level 2 intern labs?"

"Of course, MiniBoss."

Everyone jumped as the speakers relayed FRIDAY's message and stared at me, despite my attempts to hide behind Ned, away from the confused glances of my classmates and the menacing glare of Flash and Mr Crooks.

…

No one's POV

The elevator doors slid open to reveal the bustling intern labs and a frantic Emma, who, for the last five minutes while the second group was in the lift, had been freaking out that she'd lost half a tour group.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry! I forgot to tell you how the elevator worked. How did you figure it out?" Emma rambled.

"Uh, um… Mr Parker here helped us out," Mr Crooks explained hesitantly, for some reason still not understanding how a shy student like Peter Parker had known how to work the buttonless lift. Obviously, he still didn't believe that the kid had an internship.

The class slowly made their way down the endless corridor, marvelling through the soundproof at the inner workings of the intern labs. They watched as experiments exploded and the tech was tested before reaching the door one of the Level 2 labs near the end of the spotless passageway. Emma halted the class outside the door and waited for any stragglers to catch up, needing everyone to hear the next instructions.

"Ok, everyone. Now I know this must be very exciting for all of you, seeing professional lab like the one through these doors, but you must understand that everything here is expensive and most likely very, very important," Emma accented the significance of her following instructions.

"You must all listen very carefully to my next instructions as the equipment inside can be dangerous if not handled by a professional or someone trained in that area, ok?" Everyone nodded enthusiastically.

"Good, alright. So the rules are as follows; No touching anything unless given specific permission, no bothering anyone working, and no under any circumstances should you stray from the group, we don't want you getting hurt, even with the waivers signed. Ok? Also please wait patiently after you get inside, I have to scan my badge before each person as you enter since your passes don't have the right clearance." The class made a single file line to get through the door, each student eager to see the inside of the lab. They were a STEM (_science, technology, engineering and maths) _based high school after all. Peter, however, hung back. He was voluntarily the last person in the line. And for good reason too.

Emma looked bored as the necessary but tedious process was nothing but a nuisance, hindering the efficiency of the already late tour group. But as Peter scanned his badge, the door opened without the override.

"Welcome MiniBoss," FRIDAY stated through the complex speaker system.

Emma was dumbfounded. FRIDAY never addressed anyone, even the high-level officials and division heads.

"How did you do that? FRIDAY doesn't speak to anyone…" Emma questioned as Peter just shrugged it off. He was used to FRIDAY announcing him whenever he arrived anywhere.

"I don't know…" Peter replied submissively as he entered the laboratory. He did know. Tony had personally programmed FRIDAY to announce the arrival of any of the Avengers so that they could control the room they walked into and command respect. It worked pretty well.

Peter POV

As I stepped through the door, I saw the rest of my class staring, glaze-eyed at the scene before them, a sight I view almost every day. Multitudes of fancy technological equipment and dangerous-looking experiments littered the room. The interns, who were used to tour groups visiting the lab, went about their business, as usual, not paying much attention to the starry-eyed teenagers in the centre of the room.

After letting our class marvel at the sight of the lab for a few minutes, Emma stepped through the group ready to explain the inner workings of the intern labs at Stark Industries.

"So, here we are at the Level 2 intern lab at SI. This particular space is for the level 2 interns, the Gamma-2 pass holders. These are the people who have interned at Stark Industries for three years and have chosen a specific field of interest. To support and benefit the learning of the young people with interests in science, for the first two years of interning with us you get allocated time and lessons in many areas of scientific development before choosing a specific area of study in your third year."

I watched as the class intently listened to Emma explain the benefits of interning at SI. They were captivated by the intricacies and amazing opportunities it would bring.

"This is the chemistry and chemical engineering lab, where the interns solve equations and create prototypes for new tech involving chemistry. Charlie Evans here," Emma pointed to a skinny boy with thin-framed glasses who was pouring over mountains of notes, "is the head intern of this division. Charlie, come over here." Emma called.

While Charlie was talking about some of the work he'd done while an intern, I wandered over to some of the other interns in the room.

"MiniBoss! Petey! Hey, could you help us with this thing? We've been working on this dumb equation for like two months and we can't seem to solve it…" one of the interns called out. Charlie had finished and the class was about to exit but, great, now the whole class was watching me. I looked over to Charlie who was looking at me confusedly.

"MiniBoss? Why the hell are you here?" Charlie questioned.

"I'm on a school trip. This is my science class…"

"Oh my gosh. This is gold. MiniBoss is in high school. Haha! Guys!" Charlie called out to the other interns, "MiniBoss is in high school!" The other interns either burst out laughing or were just plain shocked.

"Gee, thanks, Charlie. Now, can I go have a look at that equation? I don't want to screw you guys up…" I asked.

"Yeah go ahead."

Taking a glance at the numbers and symbols that covered the whiteboard at the back of the room, I noticed a small error in calculations near the start.

"You guys forgot the negative here," I pointed to a number at the top right of the board, "which makes this come out to be a positive seventy-eight, which would make that one…" I trailed off as I completed the equation.

"It's 28kJ/mol at the end." I finished.

"Thanks! Sorry to bother you for something so menial. It was such a stupid error." one of the interns called out.

"Nah, no problem. Sometimes you just need a fresh pair of eyes."

As I walked back over to my class, they all froze before bursting into a string of questions.

"How did you do that?"

"How do they know your name?"

"Do you _actually_ have the internship?"

The barrage of sound reached my ears and I just grimaced.

"Leave Peter alone" Emma cried out over the wall of noise.

"OK class, let's go, shall we? It's time to see the Avengers museum." Emma tried again. That got people's attention, now the chatter was focused more on the Avengers.

No one's POV

As the class slowly exited the lab, Flash grabbed Peter's shirt and slammed into a wall, out of view of the other interns as well as the class and teacher.

"How much did you have to pay them to pretend they knew you? Huh?" Flash was close to his face and the tight grip he had in Peter's shoulder and arm were starting to bruise the skinny boy.

"So how'd you do it, _Penis_? You're poor, you have no money. What did you do? Beg? You're so dumb and stupid, you probably got that equation wrong and screwed up those interns for the next few months. You should just go and leave already."

Flash, unsatisfied with the non-existent answers and reactions, shoved Peter roughly into the wall before punching him in the stomach. Hard. Peter knew it was going to bruise but with his enhanced healing, he was sure it would be gone in a few hours. Flash stalked off hurriedly to catch up to the rest of the class leaving Peter with an overwhelming sense of self-doubt and hatred. He was Spider-Man, he shouldn't be pushed around by the likes of a bully like Flash. But he knew that if he retaliated or fought back, Flash would find other victims to pursue, others that couldn't handle it as well as he could.

Picking himself off the floor, Peter gathered himself together and set off to find the rest of his class.

…

"Sir, I think there is some footage you should see," FRIDAY stated over the speakers in Tony Stark's private lab.

"Put it on the screen, girl," he said as he went about completing his project, but he stopped in his tracks when he saw what was on the screen.

"_So how'd you do it, Penis? You're poor, you have no money. What did you do? Beg? You're so dumb and stupid, you probably got that equation wrong and screwed up those interns for the next few months. You should just go and leave already." _He watched as a random kid shoved his poor Peter into a wall before leaving him there, crumpled to the ground and in pain. He gasped as he saw Peter lift his shirt to check the bruising, and noticed dozens on bruises and scars from previous run-ins. Tony decided that this kid was worthy of the wrath of the Avengers. It was time to change the plan.

Embarrass Peter,

and kill the kid.

…

"Avengers Assemble!" screamed from all speakers on the Avengers floors.

…

Natasha was already in the common room when the alert sounded so she silently watched as Stark bolted through the doors of the common room and started frantically pacing around the room. He looked nervous, worried even. She knew whatever was happening was bad, and to do with her ребенок паук (_baby spider)_. Tony Stark never got worried unless it was to do with Peter.

Although the loudspeaker alert was a bit unnecessary, it brought everyone to the same spot in a very short amount of time. Natasha watched in amusement as Steve, Sam, Clint, Wanda, Vision and Bucky all race through the doors in full battle clothing, all assuming there was an important mission to attend. Both Natasha and Tony took one look at the rest of the group and burst out laughing.

"Haha… we're not… haha… it's fine…" Tony tried to say.

"Oh my...haha… we aren't going into battle guys it's fine" Natasha revealed after composing herself.

"Wait, how do you know?"

"You are only _that _worried when it's about Peter," she stated calmly, a hint of amusement tinting her words.

"So what's up? What's wrong with Peter?"

"FRIDAY, can you please show them that video you showed me in the lab?"

"Security footage from 10:17:39 am, Floor 8, Level 2 interning laboratories, Hallway 3" FRIDAY stated before the clip was projected on a blank wall.

"_How much did you have to pay them to pretend they knew you? Huh? So how'd you do it, Penis? You're poor, you have no money. What did you do? Beg? You're so dumb and stupid, you probably got that equation wrong and screwed up those interns for the next few months. You should just go and leave already."_

The avengers watched on in horror as their little spider was shoved into a wall where he crumpled before their eyes, gasping as they saw the severe bruises and scars. They all came to a unanimous decision.

The bully had to go.


	4. Avengers Museum

No one's POV

After pulling himself together and composing his worried mind, Peter set off to find his class. Although he knew that the majority of the students would not even notice if he was missing, Ned sure would. Mr Crooks may notice and not care or be completely oblivious to it all, in any instance Mr Crooks wouldn't bat an eyelash if Peter had run off and gotten hurt. He only cared about upholding the reputation of himself and the school.

Hurrying himself along, he stumbled down the pristine corridor through which his class and Flash recently exited, on their way to the rest of the tour. Emma had said that they were going to the Avengers Museum so Peter just had to figure out which floor of the museum they would be on. He reasoned that they would likely be on the first one so upon his arrival at the elevator, Peter instructed FRIDAY to take him to the first level of the Avengers Museum.

During his ascent through the tower, Peter's mind wandered to FRIDAY and her ever-observant cameras. She would definitely have captured the Flash incident and would easily have the potential to show his dad and the rest of the Avengers. Peter almost felt sorry for Flash, you did not want to be on the receiving end of the Avenger's wrath. If they found out about the bullying, Peter was not even sure if Flash would make it out of the tower alive.

"Floor 16, Level 1, Avengers Museum." FRIDAY's voice relayed the automated message from the speakers in the elevator as the doors slid open revealing a small foyer-like area with directions to each section of the museum.

"Thanks, FRI."

"You seem distressed, Peter. Would you like me to inform Boss or Mrs Stark?"

"No, thanks FRI, I'm fine. And as a side note, can you please, please, please refrain from showing the footage of what happened between me and Flash to Dad? He may kill Flash and I really don't want him to go to jail for murder or assault."

Peter shuddered, almost as if he was watching as Flash was brutally murdered, imaging all the many different ways it could be done. Especially with an aunt like Natasha, or an uncle like Bucky. Not to mention a father such as Tony Stark.

"I regret to inform you, that they have already viewed the video recorded at 10:17:39 am." Peter visibly winced.

"They?"

"All the resident Avengers have been notified of the issue and have watched the footage. I'm sorry Peter."

Peter repentantly nodded his head at one of FRIDAY's many cameras and continued his journey into the Avengers Museum.

As he opened the doors to the first section of the museum, Peter's over-sensitive ears were met with the uncomfortable sound of many teenagers excitedly roaming the exhibits. He scanned the room for his friend, finding him over at the Captain America exhibit. The Avengers Museum was a treasure trove of memorabilia from important and exciting battles, and replicas of suits and high-tech prototypes of weapons. It had a display for every Avenger, each equipped with their costumes, weapons of choice and a list of fun, interesting facts.

Walking up behind Ned, Peter tapped him on the shoulder, startling the other boy from his fanboy daze. Ned had always idolised the Avengers and still did, despite eating dinner with them every other week.

"Hey, Peter. Where were you?" Ned questioned inquisitively. "I thought you'd ditched me. It's bad enough MJ isn't here to dissuade Flash, we both know he's scared of her."

"I'm fine dude, just got caught up in the lab helping Charlie." Ned tilted his head quizzically. He'd seen Peter exit the lab when everyone else did, but before he could ask anything about it Peter swiftly changed the subject.

"So, Captain America huh?"

"Yeah, it's so cool! It's been updated since we last came down here. Look at this! It's got his first suit and shield!" said Ned, completely forgetting his worry and confusion.

"That's awesome! Do you wanna see another exhibit now? I have a feeling you've just been staring at this one for the past five minutes in a stupified daze."

"You're definitely right. Let's have a look at the Iron Man one, check out its new features!"

Ned and his excitable rambles grabbed Peter's arm and dragged him over to the shiny glass case. The Iron Man exhibit had always been Peter's favourite and he enjoyed looking at the technological genius of the Iron Man suits, despite him assisting Tony to update them regularly. The display consisted of the Mark I and II suits as well as a few honourable mentions where new features had been added;

Mark VII with the suitcase version, Mark IX with the remote controlled attachment bracelets _(the one in Avengers_) and Mark XX, the first suit that was controlled completely by JARVIS. It also had some interesting facts about Tony's work with Stark Industries.

"Did you know that Mr Stark created a whole new element for his arc reactor?" Ned gushed, reading the new information on the plaque.

"Yeah, but he was dying when he made it so he doesn't really like to talk about it. I'm surprised he put it on the facts list actually."

"Huh?… anyway, this museum is so cool. This whole building is so cool, I can't believe you get to come here every day."

"Honestly, me either."

Suddenly, their bubble was burst by a loud squeal.

"Oh my gods. There's a Spider-Man exhibit!" a girl yelled, obviously very excited and maybe a little bit in love with the bug-themed vigilante. The whole class rushed to the case from wherever they were, crowding the exhibit in their desperate attempts to see it.

Ned whirled around to face Peter, a look of utter excitement and disbelief crossing his face.

"You didn't tell me you had an exhibit? Dude that's awesome!" Peter just shrugged.

"I didn't know either. It must have been added with the new updates." Wandering slowly over to the crowded display, Peter asked Ned, "Wait, how long do we have here?"

"Half an hour in the Museum before we go to the Research and Development labs. At the moment we've got about twelve minutes left"

Once the duo had reached the exhibit, the majority of the crowd had dispersed, continuing to other sections of the museum. Peter stood, frozen in awe at his own display, his very first suit (the pyjamas) and his first real high-tech suit that Tony made him were both prominent in the display.

"Dude is it true that you're terrified of spiders?" Ned giggled as he read the Spider-Man facts.

"You try getting bitten by a radioactive spider, see how you like them after that." Peter retorted indifferently.

"Wait a sec, Peter, you declined to be an Avenger?"

"Wait what? I thought it was a test?"

"Listen to this; _After an incredible battle of strength and wills between Spider-Man and a villain named 'The Vulture', Spider-Man was offered a place within the ranks of the Avengers. Instead of accepting, as any rational human would do, Spider-Man declined the offer, saying he wanted to spend more time with family and friends. Tony Stark then had to deal with the multitudes of the press which were stationed behind a door waiting for the announcement._"

Oh man, that's why they got engaged. Well, it worked out for the best."

"I guess. You seriously said no to being an Avenger?" Ned couldn't believe his ears.

"I mean, yeah?"

"What's wrong with you man…"

Emma gave the group a ten-minute warning before strolling over to Mr Crooks, no doubt to explain the next section of the tour.

Just then Peter's spidey-sense went off, a slight tingle on the back of his neck warning him of oncoming danger. He quickly spun in a circle searching intently for the cause. Determining it as a false alarm, Peter continued walking, catching up to Ned who had moved on to the next display.

"What was that about?" Ned whispered.

"Spidey-sense alert. False alarm though…"

Ned nodded in understanding as they both fawned over the improved Black Widow exhibit.

Clint's POV

I groaned as I reached yet another locked vent. FRIDAY had shut the majority of the vents around the Avengers Museum where Peter and his class were supposedly having their tour.

"FRIDAY, please unlock the vents so I can pass."

"I'm sorry, Mr Barton, but your protocols have been overridden by MiniBoss who wishes you to not embarrass him while on this trip."

I sighed in defeat, attempting to come up with a new plan to get to Peter.

'_I could walk through the door like a normal person… Nah, when have I ever been normal? What about the window? Actually, I can't climb walls, nevermind. Ugh, I wish the vents were open. Maybe I should get Tony to hack his own AI so I can get in. Yep, that's the best idea you've had this week, brain.' _

Just as I started to retreat from the vent entrance (_vent-rance haha) _to the museum, FRIDAY spoke.

"However," I perked up again at the sound of FRIDAY's resigned sounding tone, "it seems as though Peter is being bullied, so it is in his best interest that you intrude."

"Thanks, FRIDAY. You won't regret this. Well, you might but there's nothing you can do about it."

"You're welcome, Mr Barton."

Just as I crawled through to the museum vents, my foot got caught in the locking mechanism, causing me to fall over.

"Shit-tttake mushrooms." I whisper-exclaimed, adding the end on for fear that Cap was watching. I just hoped that Peter was too busy talking to his friends that he didn't hear the bang that sounded as I hit the vent floor.

Peter's POV

I stilled as my sensitive hearing picked up a small bang from the vents above my head to the left. It was followed by the unmistakable curse from Uncle Clint. _Crumbs,_ I thought, _Clint must be the first part of their embarrassment plan. I just hope he does nothing to Flash… _Ned looked at me confusedly.

"What's going on?"

"You'll see it about 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…" I counted down and pointed upwards as Uncle Clint dropped from the vents on my head. Or what would have been my head if I hadn't moved due to my enhanced reflexes. '_Yep, here comes the first phase of 'Embarrass Peter'. Yay…'_

Ned lets out a choked yelp. I'm not surprised, I mean, who wouldn't be startled if a fully grown man dressed in black spandex dropped from the ceiling onto their best friend's head.

"Hey, Uncle Clint. Is it your turn to bother me now?" I say, ready for the inevitable onslaught.

"Yeah, well I wanted to… wait. Am I not the first one? Damn, I thought I was…"

"Nah, I'm kidding. You get the prize for being the first one to embarrass me and bother me into my early grave."

"It's not all bad kiddo. I'm sure you'll get us all back later when you smash us at Mario Kart."

"Yeah, you're going down."

Throughout our exchange, Ned was about as still as a brick wall, and just as loud. He just stood there, frozen, silently opening and closing his mouth as if he were a fish.

"Hey, is Ned ok?" Ned just splutters.

"It is Ned right?" Clint tries to confirm.

"Yeah, yes Mr Barton, Hawkeye sir. _He knows my name!_" Ned whispered the last part to me.

"Ned, stop it. Call me Clint. Please."

"Oh sure, Mr Bar… um, Clint." Ned looked as though he was about to explode, bouncing intently on the balls of his feet, a wide smile covering his face.

"Anyway, where is the rest of your class? I can't embarrass you, Peter unless they're here…"

I was so glad we still had five minutes left in the museum. It meant people weren't surrounding us, but of course, my Peter Parker luck struck again as the same girl who found the Spider-Man exhibit came around the corner to see Uncle Clint. Obviously she screamed, bringing my entire class into the room. _Damn it._

"Unc… Cli… Mr Barton? Don't go overboard…" I said as a way to try and placate him even though I knew it would be no use.

"Mr Barton? What happened to Uncle Clint? Man kids these days, they have terrible memories." he said with a mischievous grin. My class gaped at my interaction, I guess I was talking to an Avenger.

"Anyway, Bucky was baking cookies this morning and told me to bring some down for you and Ned," he said as he pulled a box out of seemingly nowhere. "They are the snickers kind, the best kind, so I took the liberty of packing them in a box to deliver them to you personally." He was giving me a strange smile, something was up but I couldn't put my finger on it just yet.

"Bucky's cookies are the best," I say gratefully as he hands me the opaque box.

"Of course, the journey down here was long and tiring and I had to bargain with FRIDAY to even let me in here of course since you gave the order to lock the vents."

I didn't like where this was going. Not in the slightest.

"What have you done?" I said darkness and threats lace my seemingly sweet comment.

"Well, I got a bit hungry you see…"

"You didn't!" I frantically pull the lid off my empty box of cookies. "Uncle Clint! How could you! You've got your own ones upstairs, why'd you have to steal mine." I whine as I chuck the box back to him. I hear murmured whispers from the rest of my class. I was so caught up in the cookie fiasco that I forgot they were there. _Crap._

"Anyway MiniStark, I should go."

Of course, that was when the class erupted, questions flying at Clint from every direction. Emma rushed over with Mr Crooks, attempting to settle the class down.

"Calm down class. If you ask one at a time, Mr Barton may actually answer questions."

That got the students to shut up.

"How do you hit targets from so far away?"

"Practice."

"Why do you use a bow and arrow?"

"I like it."

"Is it hard to use archery when the threats you face have much more advanced weaponry?"

"Sometimes."

I just watched in amusement as Clint gave vague one word, monosyllabic answers to all the superficial questions that were thrown his way by the class, though after five or so minutes I could tell he was getting bored. And obviously, that's when Flash decided to be an obnoxious and very stupid jerk.

"How do you know Penis Parker?" he jeered, smirking in my direction.

"_Peter_ is an incredibly smart and kind-hearted boy that I know because he is Tony's personal intern. He has wormed his way into all of the Avenger's hearts so if you dare even think about saying another word about him… well, let's just say you don't want to be on the wrong side of our wrath."

Clint jumped to the ceiling, grabbing onto the hole in the vent through which he entered.

"See you later MiniStark." he spat out, giving Flash one last withering glare as he disappeared.


	5. Robot Time

Peter's POV

The aftermath of Uncle Clint's outburst made way to Emma attempting (read failing) to quieten the class. My unsuccessful efforts to persuade the earth to swallow me whole honestly just made everything worse as I received sympathetic glances from Ned and Emma. I hate pity. After May died, all anyone could do was give me the tilted head '_Are you ok?"_ It made me feel like a debilitated little baby. At least no-one was questioning me as much as they were excited about meeting an Avenger. The drone of individual conversations had reached an excruciating volume that made me want to curl up in a ball and cut myself off from the entire world. I couldn't keep my wavering facade up for much longer, sensory overload was just around the corner.

The students were chattering and fangirling about their latest endeavour on the already 'amazing' field trip.

"Oh my god! That was Hawkeye."

"He's so hot…"

"Did you see how he left? It was so cool."

"Wow, I can't believe it! We met an Avenger!"

"Dude, Hawkeye spoke to us. He might recognise me now…"

"QUIET!" Emma yelled over the agonizing din of noise that had emanated from the excitable teenagers.

"Listen to Emma, class." Mr Crooks facilitated.

"Alright. Now that I have your attention, can I ask for five minutes of your time to explain the next few hours of the tour? Thank you. Ok, so from here we will… Mr Thompson, stop talking and have the same courtesy as your other classmates please."

Emma singled out Flash who had ignored her completely and continued to converse with the other mindless jocks. Her previously sweet and kindly tone morphing into a sharp blade of accusation laced with subtle venom. Flash visibly paled, remembering his less than stellar experience with Hawkeye.

"Sorry, Emma…" Flash gulped and quickly shut his mouth.

"As I was saying, from here we will visit some of the higher up 'Research and Development' laboratories otherwise known as the R and D labs. These spaces will be much more delicate and temperamental than the interning labs so we will proceed with extra caution." Despite Emma's clear warning, Flash's disregard for rules was bound to cause issues in the foreseeable future.

"The next floor up houses the spare labs that we use for workshops and business prototype demonstrations for investors. This is where we will be participating in a workshop and competition. You will receive more information once we arrive."

As the class filed out the door after Emma and Mr Crooks, Ned and I hung back for one last look at my very own display in the museum.

"Man your life is epic."

"I know Ned. I know…" I said reminiscently as we quickly raced out the door to catch up with the class. Racing down the corridor to the elevator, we caught up to the class as the doors closed on the first group of students ascending the tower to the R & D labs. Of course, just my luck that Flash had waited for the second group.

Flash pulled me aside, to the opposite side of the group from Mr Crooks, and whispered in my ear,

"How much did you have to pay Hawkeye to get him to pretend he knew you?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Or did you do him a few favours. You know that's disgusting that you're living up to your name _Penis_. Your lie isn't worth it. No one believes you anyway."

"Please just leave me alone."

Flash glared at me, his cold, dark eyes searching mine for the evidence of lies. He stalked off, leaving me alone before Ned caught up to me.

"What'd he say this time?" Ned worried.

"Nothing Ned. Don't worry about it." I shrugged him off, trying to force the unwelcoming and downright horrific images that Flash implied, from my brain.

"Peter…" he tried again but to no avail.

With a small, '_ding'_, the elevator doors opened to bring us to the next section of our tour.

The class piled into the elevator as Mr Crooks, who had learnt how to use the elevator since the last ride, told FRIDAY to head to the correct laboratory floor.

…_**name the baby time skip**_…

As the doors slid open and the class filed out, I recognised the unmistakable voice of Bruce Banner. I double-checked the lab number, number four. The fourth lowest lab there is. Bruce never comes down here, this is the robotics lab.

_Oh no. Bruce is never down here… this must be one of their plans to embarrass me. Crumbs, I'm so screwed if he calls on me. Please, please, please any god or deity of any kind, don't let me be embarrassed right now. If Thor has another brother who's the God of Embarrassment I pray that my cause of death is not embarrassment in five minutes. _

As we entered the lab, I used my classmates as human shields, protecting myself from the view of Uncle Bruce. _If he sees me, he will definitely call on me, and I will die. _Hiding behind Ned, and pulling my hoodie over my face, I was hidden (partially) from sight. I noticed Bruce scanning the crowd, no doubt spotting me in the process. Curse the fame of the Avengers, who else would want to hide from superheroes? _Villains maybe? _

I hesitantly gave up on my terrible disguise, my eyes silently pleading for him not to call on me.

Obviously, he called on me anyway.

"Peter, can you help me with this code? I've been working on it for hours but I can't seem to get rid of the bugs in the system." Bruce rubbed at his eyes below his glasses with a yawn as my class all turned to stare at me in shock.

"How much sleep have you had?" I asked inquisitively, ignoring the multitudes of accusatory glares from Flash and his lackeys and the surprised gapes of the other students (Ned included though he was more at the fact that Bruce Banner, the famed scientist was less than five metres away from where he stood_)_.

_Bruce can't have gotten more than three hours in his state, even if he's had coffee..._

"Hey, I had a good eight hours…" _Yeah right, Bruce._

"Over how many days?"

"Five…" _Thought so._

"I will look at this code..." I said as I slowly made my way to Bruce's table at the front of the group. The class parted like the Red Sea as I walked through. "... if you promise me that you will actually get some sleep today." I bargained for his health. Hey, it's important to get a good night's sleep.

(A/N _It really is you should try it)_

"Fine," he said dejectedly as I set to work on fixing the bugs.

… _look at that. Another time skip_ …

As I finished the code, the class who had been astonishingly quiet for the short duration it took to fix the bugs, exploded into a million questions.

"What was wrong with the code?"

"Can I help with something?"

"Can you turn into the Hulk right now?"

"Why was Peter asking you about sleep? Does he know you or something?"

"Why was Parker chosen to fix the code? I could have done so much better than him."

The last one came from Flash (of course), causing Bruce to whirl around on the spot and stalk over to the now trembling boy.

"I chose Peter to fix that code since he is familiar with it, as he wrote the original code with Tony. And I definitely doubt you could have done any better, Peter is a genius and unlike you, is not a spoiled, egotistical brat." Bruce spat his response, his eyes flashing a dangerous and vibrant shade of green, an emerald tinge creeping up his neck. Swallowing his anger, Bruce turned around and walked back to the table as I rejoined my class.

Emma chose that moment to intervene and continue with our lagging schedule.

"Right, so this is one of the lower robotics R & D labs, which basically hold all the robotic inventions in the first stage of construction and testing. Quite a bit coding is also done in here. Everything in this lab is delicate so do not touch anything."

The class spent five minutes wandering the lab, talking to the scientists and asking questions about their projects, while I sat with Bruce and went through the schematics of the newly bug-free code.

"Ok Midtown." Emma interrupted, "I'd like to introduce you to Dr Harvey Lee, our head scientist in the Robotics division of 'Research and Development'. He will lead your workshop alongside Dr Bruce Banner here. Over to you." Emma introduced as she handed the class's rapt attention over to Dr Lee.

"Yeah, so as Emma said, I'm Harvey, and I will be taking you lucky people for your workshop. Now if you could please get into pairs…" Dr Lee started.

"Um, excuse me Harvey, but we have an odd number of students here so there will have to be one group of three." Mr Crooks said nervously.

"That's fine sir. I've been told that one of your students is Peter Parker so he can just help others out with some of the projects." Harvey just shrugged while Mr Crooks blanched.

"Ok, so now that's all sorted, if you follow me to the workshop space, I will give you the task and you can start on your project for the competition."

… _Hi, I'm Fred the time skipping genie … _

"Alrighty, everyone. Gather around so I can hand out the task sheet and explain what you have to do. Take one and pass it on." Harvey said as he handed a stack of papers to the small kid next to him.

" So, the aim of the task is to create a robot from the parts given to you. I'll have you know that all the boxes of parts are different so you can't copy each other, and it is possible to build a robot with each set of parts." Harvey clarified.

"At your station, there will the aforementioned box of parts, and a computer through which you must create a code that once uploaded will make your robot a beneficial asset to society. Good luck, you have one and a half hours."

Each pair raced off to find a bench and get started on the project. Ned gave me a sad glance has he partnered up with another kid from our decathlon team. Will was nice, smart, but nowhere near as good as Ned with a computer, so he was designated to building the robot. I watched in amusement as Flash disregarded his partner's ideas, refusing to let him help and insisting that doing it himself was in the best interests of the team.

Throughout the competition, I wandered around the teams, giving snippets of advice and answering questions, neither of which was received particularly well. It seemed as though my class either didn't believe that I was any help, so I went to the corner, to the scrap parts pile, and began to create my own robot. A small spider drone that connects to Karen in my spider suit. I will ask Tony later for a way that I could store the drone in my suit, maybe have the drone fold into the chest piece?

As I finished downloading Karen into the computer chip of my new reconnaissance drone, I noticed that the time was almost up. Packing up my bench, I wandered back over to where Harvey was standing.

"Ok class. Time's up. Please bring your creations to the demonstration bench so that we can judge."

Five of the robots were basically carrier servants, tall platters on wheels that could carry drinks, papers and whatnot, responding to various vocal commands. Six of them were dancing robots that were said to provide entertainment for children in hospitals. Ned and Will's robot was a transforming robot that could be used for spy activities. It could be moving surveillance or reconnaissance camera, and it could transform itself into a box, that can only be unlocked with a specific vocal command. Flash's robot was said to be a flying drone, but it never really left the table, it's propellers breaking off and leaving the drone to fall to pieces on the floor.

"Ok, so the winners of this competition are Ned and Will, with you spy robot! Very clever design boys you should be very proud. Also as your prize for winning you get a free pass to lunch in the cafeteria where you are going next. It is all-you-can-eat so enjoy!" Harvey said with a smile. "It was lovely to meet you all, have an enjoyable rest of the day. Goodbye!"

"Bye Harvey!" Everyone chorused back.

As Harvey left, Ned bounded over to me.

"Did you see our robot! Oh my gosh, I didn't think it would work."

"Hey, you are awesome at programming. Of course, it was going to work."

"What were you making, I noticed you working away in the corner."

"Oh, nothing much, just a drone for my suit."

"Nothing much? Nothing much? Of course, to you, a drone is nothing much. Is it connected to Karen?"

"Yeah. I'll use it for reconnaissance and scouting out areas. A bit like yours."

"Sure. Hey before I forget, what's the best thing to get in the cafeteria? I don't want my all-you-can-eat pass to go to waste."

"Umm. I don't really know." I said as we followed our to the elevator to head to lunch.


	6. Why, Flash

Hi everyone, I am so so so so so (and many more so's) sorry for not uploading earlier. I've been super busy and have begun senior school, and... I don't really have an excuse, its been almost a year. Thank you for all your kind and inspiring reviews! I do actually read all of them when they come. You guys are the best so thankyou for believing in me. Please forgive me, happy reading.

\- Ami

* * *

CHAPTER 6 - Why, Flash...

Making our way down to the cafeteria, Ned constantly chatted away about the fantabulousness of Avengers Tower and how amazing everything was. His rambles were gratefully distracting me from the horror of my imagination, stopping my spiraling thought of what the other Avengers were going to do. I was sure that they were definitely going to crash the already not-so-great party that was the field trip tour. My mind was filled to the brim and on the verge of breaking apart. There was so much that they hadn't done. I realised that we'd only seen like two out of what seemed like hundreds of Avengers. Ned's extended monologue gripped me by the corners of my mind, pulling back to the horrifying reality of the tour.

"...and dude… have you seen the tech? It's so cool! And screens everywhere? How are you not excited?"

"Bro. I live here." I said, unsuccessfully hiding the wariness in my voice. This tour had already gotten on my nerves.

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot about that."

"How?"

"I don't even know! I guess everything has me hyped. But you have to admit this stuff is cool…"

"Yeah, it's great. One day, remind me to show you Tony's lab. It's got all the latest STARK tech and a bunch of unused AIs and robots."

"Dude! Why haven't you taken me there already?"

"I don't know. You haven't asked."

"Duuuuddddeee…"

I tune Ned out as he continues to ramble about the events of the day, choosing instead to decide what to have for lunch. I really love the cafeteria here. It's an expansive hall full of different cuisines and wondrous smells. Whenever Dad finds a restaurant or cafe that we like, he'll immediately attempt to get a place or chain installed in the ever-growing cafeteria. It should really be called a food court considering the vast amount of options and shops to choose from. I have to say though, my absolute favourite thing about this place is that everyone, everyone (including the Avengers), can mingle and chat and converse about whatever without the boundaries of walls and elitism of rank. Every single person in the building comes down for their lunch, able to bounce ideas off each other despite the different areas of expertise. Sometimes, I think that the most productive work gets done on lunch break. It's definitely when the most amount of multi-disciplinary projects get started.

"Peter… Peter?" Ned was waving a hand in my face and calling my name. I wonder why…

"Peter!"

"Uh huh, what?" I said, shaking myself away from my internal monologue.

"Uhhh… which way is it to the cafeteria, we lost the group," Ned replied.

"Right, umm, how did that happen?"

"I don't know they must have walked around a corner without me seeing as I was talking to you…"

"Oh, ok."

"Peter. Peter! Oh my god oh my god... Remember what Emma said? We're gonna be stuck on this floor! Oh my god, we're gonna die in here!"

"Ned calm down. We're gonna be fine, all you need to get around is a Gamma-4 pass. I'm Alpha-10, we're gonna be fine…"

"Oh yeah… how did I forget again? Damn this place is cool."

I marveled (haha, I know it's cringy, bear with me…) at the hilarious sight of Ned's lightning-fast mood changes. I have never understood how he can just flick between emotions like that… Once I noticed Ned's breathing and pulse return to a somewhat normal level, I continued.

"Come on, the cafeteria's this way."

Scene skip...

We quickly found our way to the elevator, with me telling FRIDAY to take us to the cafeteria level.

"That could have been bad. At least you were with me, Pete."

"Yeah, close one" I replied, an incredulous tone seeping into my voice as the doors opened into the chaotic cafeteria.

…

Stepping into the bustling hall, Ned and I quickly made our way over to our group, hiding at the back as Emma finished giving her instructions.

"So you each get one free meal, including a drink and dessert, apart from the two of you who have the all-you-can-eat passes. We'll spend about half an hour in here for lunch before heading off to the next activity."

Everyone immediately dispersed, all excited to try the food and have the chance to talk freely to the other employees in the building. I grabbed Ned by the elbow and dragged him over to the shawarma stand, the only other location of the team's favourite food other than the original restaurant.

"This is the team's favourite. Wanna try?" I ask Ned who seems to be a bundle of excited energy at my words.

"Y...yeah…"

"Why is it their favourite? Did it like, save them from a bad guy or … I don't know… something cool?" Ned asks, still rambling. So much rambling.

"Nah it's not that big of a deal. After their first battle, you know, the one with the Chitauri, Dad suggested that they all go try something different and proposed shawarma. Apparently it looked pretty funny. This ragtag group of supposed heroes that were all battered and bruised from the battle eating in silence in the middle of a destroyed New York restaurant diner thingo."

"Huh… ok"

Kinda almost a flashback…

Dad had told me the story once, a while ago. He remembered it fondly and said that it reminded him of a Neil Gaiman quote, "No darkness lasts forever. And even then, there are stars." He'd told me that despite the world suddenly shifting on its axis and it's perspective of the universe dramatically shifted, everyone could still find moments of peace and that everything would turn out fine in the end. I've always admired him for that.

Back to normal time…

We slowly but surely reached the front of the line. Glancing inside I cringed, of course, they would come here to harass me. Hidden inside the restaurant was Wanda, Bucky, and Vision in his glamoured form. They all smirked in sync as I ordered, their true identities hidden behind a wall of dismissal. Of course, no one would recognise them if they were being inconspicuous, they were (except for Vision) spies. (Wanda is being trained by Nat). As soon as we were given our food, I raced away from the booth. Ned found an empty table to call ours before rushing around the wide expansive room to find more delicious food.

But, of course, as soon as he left, the one person I was desperately trying to avoid (especially with Bucky, Wanda, and Vision nearby) came to taunt me.

"Go away Flash, I'm really not in the mood…"

"Teeny tiny Penis Parker isn't in the mood huh? What? Are you busy doing favours? Is that how you've bribed the boss around here?"

"Please. Just leave me alone."

"No. I don't wanna leave you alone. Is Fatso gonna be sad that you're not with him? Huh? Look at me, Parker!" His voice was raised above the most comfortable inconspicuous level, it was gaining some attention.

I steeled his glare with one of my own.

"Go away. I don't want you to get hurt, no matter how much you deserve it."

"What? You gonna punch me Penis?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the slowly advancing figures, each with a murderous glint in their eyes. This wasn't going to end well.

"Penis Parker, like you, can hurt me…" he scoffed. He obviously had no idea and definitely still didn't believe me about anything that had happened today.

Suddenly a large and calloused hand grasped Flash's shoulder, startling him out of his mean stupor.

"Son, that wasn't nice…" Bucky said, the murder in his eyes getting stronger by the second.

"Oh my god. Oh my god. You're the Avengers. The avengers are talking to me! Hi! I'm Flash, I'm like the smartest kid here."

Flash looked almost proud and had obviously missed the dangerous and dark mood spewing from the heroes in front of him.

"I don't like bullies, a little something I learned from Steve."

Flash blanched. He stopped. He stared. Then he crumbled, frantically trying to get out of the situation while I just stood there, my arm still tightly gripped in Flash's clammy palm.

"I... I … I'm ss.. sor.. sorry sir. We're just friends. Haha, see…" Flash grabbed my arm and ruffled my hair like I was some kind of dog.

"See, just joking around…"

Flash looked as though he was going to piss himself at any moment and Wanda, well, let's just say that Vision's arms may snap off with how much he was holding her back. My silent thanks to Vision went unheard. No doubt Wanda would cause a scene, I do love her though. I was almost certain that she would attempt to murder him, she's like a very protective older sister. My worries came straight back as Flash attempted to reason with them.

"You see, he says that he's an intern here… but SI doesn't hire high schoolers… sir…"

"That doesn't give you the right to treat anyone that way. If I see you harassing Mr. Parker, here again, you won't be joking around anymore." Bucky's threat lingered in the air. It seemed to shock Flash into a subordinate frenzy.

"Of course sir… I… I… well… yes ok."

I was mortified. They were definitely gonna tell dad. This really really wasn't going to end well. For anybody. I might as well reveal my identity now and be done with it. The three avengers stalked away, Wanda throwing dangerous glares over her shoulder, pushed forward by Bucky and Vision's strong arms. Oh god.

As soon as they had left the room Flash turned to me.

"I don't know what kind of sick game you're playing or who you've obviously begged to get everyone to pretend to know you, but I swear to god I will find out. And I will ruin you."

Glancing up at FRIDAY's cameras I realised that this was only the beginning.

Avengers POV

The elevator doors opened to reveal three murderous balls of energy. They ripped into the full living room and proceeded to tell everyone what had happened. The alert from FRIDAY didn't help the situation either. They needed a new plan, and fast.

"Ok," Tony said. "So it isn't working. We need something that will actually scare the s #t out of that kid."

They couldn't have their resident angel be bullied by the crap bag. Ok, maybe not an angel but he was up there, like a reincarnated golden retriever puppy.

"I'll do it" Natasha yelled from the back. "Why don't we have them come to the training rooms next, and I'll do scare him under a ruse of learning self-defense. And then I'll threaten him again while he's locked on the floor, that might do it…"

"Great idea, Steve can go with you too."

"Perfect…"

The plan was in action. Hopefully, it would work this time.

(PPPS here we go)


End file.
